The Gift of Life

“For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” — 1 Corinthians 2:2

If the Apostle Paul ever made a New Year’s resolution, he probably only had one resolution on his list: “[This year] I resolve to know nothing but Christ and him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2).

Paul’s message is radically simple: Salvation is in Christ alone. What does this mean for us? It means it’s not Christ plus our good behavior, or the number of verses we memorize, or how much we tithe, or the wisdom we gained from the latest seminar, or how many years we taught Bible study.

It’s simply Christ — Christ plus nothing.

That’s Paul’s message, a message that is as right throughout this coming year as it will be in 2999. Let’s make our resolution for 2018 to focus on Jesus, for who he is and what he did for us through his gift of life.

F – FILL GOD'S HOUSE WITH 40,000 WORSHIPERS AT OUR WEEKEND SERVICES BY 2020

Christmas at Saddleback Fills God’s House

This month, our church family celebrated this ultimate Christmas gift of life with holiday events, gatherings, and worship services at all 19 of our Saddleback campuses. Not only did our church family celebrate the message of hope, healing, and joy, but we helped fill God’s house.

At our regional campuses alone, there were 57,423 in attendance, 41 baptisms, and 1,180 salvations. This doesn’t account for the thousands who visited our international campuses, or the 13,679 people who viewed the Christmas message online!

Official Launch of Saddleback Yorba Linda

At Saddleback’s new campus in Yorba Linda, over 600 people attended Christmas service just three weeks after the official launch. As the next step in achieving our “F” goal, this new campus will help reach the one million residents of North Orange County.

Click HERE to read about the success of the Grand Opening on December 3rd, and what this campus has in store for 2018.

A – ASSIST 250,000 NEEDY PEOPLE THROUGH OUR LOCAL PEACE PLAN

Saddleback’s Holiday Food Drive and First Harvest From PEACE Farm

Christmas isn’t just about receiving the message of hope and love, however. It’s also about sharing that message with those in need. That’s why this month we hosted Saddleback’s Holiday Food Drive to collect and distribute items for our eight Food Pantries.

In order to continue God’s work in this ministry, all of our campuses were invited to participate in the annual Food Drive from November 19 to December 3. Click HERE to read about the generosity of our members, and the first harvest from our PEACE Farm!

World AIDS Day

Another way we help meet our Daring Faith “A” goal is by serving people through our signature ministries, including the HIV&AIDS Initiative. Timing with World AIDS Day on December 1st, our church family joined with the community around the world in recognizing the 37 million people living with HIV.

Click HERE to watch a special message by Kay Warren about collectively raising our voices to say we are committed to the fight against HIV and AIDS.  

Responding to the Refugee Crisis 

From existing ministries to the launch of new ones, this December Local PEACE announced another opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus. One of the newest outreaches was sparked by a desire to respond to the current refugee crisis. This evolving ministry will be for anyone who has a heart for foreigners seeking a new beginning in America.

Volunteers are already meeting regularly to learn about issues, explore challenges, and discuss opportunities to minister to refugees. Click HERE to learn how you can minister to refugees and asylum-seekers, and support them in successful assimilation to their new home.

I – INTERCONNECT OUR GROWING FELLOWSHIP THROUGH NEW TECHNOLOGIES

Beta Testing  Saddleback’s Ministry Manager

Two of our five FAITH goals are interconnecting our growing fellowship through new technologies and training our members to be global leaders in ministry. During the month of December, our web and tech teams focused on these two goals with the launch of Saddleback’s Ministry Manager.

Now in beta testing, this new tool is a way to steward volunteers and mobilize members into ministries. Click HERE to read about this new program that can help shepherd you toward your calling in ministry and connect you to serving opportunities that align with your SHAPE.

H - HELP TAKE THE GOOD NEWS TO THE LAST 3,000 UNREACHED TRIBES ON EARTH

In an effort to take the Good News to the last unreached tribes—the “H” goal of Daring FAITH — Saddleback hosted 660 people during the Finishing the Task Conference. Held from December 5–7 at our Lake Forest campus, the event entitled “Staying the Course,” brought together a global network of mission agencies and churches working toward planting churches among every people group in the world. Click HERE to read highlights from the event and how an additional 250 unreached people groups will now hear the message of God’s love.

As we reflect on all that God has done in 2017, we now look forward to what he will do in 2018. Thank you for blessing this church, serving our community, and having the compassion to see and respond to the needs of others. Your faithfulness has already helped us make tremendous progress towards our five F.A.I.T.H. goals!  

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Thank you for your commitment to Daring Faith. YOU are the reason we can make a difference through these five God-inspired goals. HERE is just one story that represents hundreds of lives that are being transformed because of your sacrifice.